5.4. 3. 2.1.

We have lift off.

Welcome once again to Planet Normal, the Telegraph podcast with Alison Pearson.

Hello.

And me, Liam Halligan.

First of all, Merry Christmas and a happy new year to Planet Normal listeners.

Co-pilot Pearson and I are taking a yule-tide break.

But amidst the turkey, mince pies and brandy butter, our weight loss competition continues.

As regular listeners know, LaPiersen is on Teamer Zempick, aka Fatty's Little Helper.

Co-pilot Halligan, meanwhile, is going into the breach with nothing but Hutzpar and his old

university-era rowing machine.

There'll be a planet normal way in on Thursday the 9th of January

when we'll be back in the cockpit of the rocket of right thinking.

But in the meantime, this week and next,

we're bringing you some best-of interviews from 2024,

some of the stairways who've joined us on the flying refuge of reasoned views.

Now, back in late October, just minutes after Chancellor Rachel Reeves had delivered what

turned out to be a deeply controversial budget, Planet Norr welcomed Liz Truss onto the rocket.

What did the former Tory Prime Minister think of the first labour budget for 14 years. Well, her

instant analysis was that Reeves had quotes, turbocharged taxes and crashed the economy into the

wall. Now, here in the Planet Normal Studio at the Telegraph headquarters, we are delighted

to welcome someone who needs very little in the way of introduction.

...